FAT ABSORPTION KINETICS AND SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS OF FRIED BATTER COATED SYSTEMS

面糊涂层食品在北美被广泛消费，尽管人们对高脂肪饮食感到担忧。重要的是要发展所需的知识，客观生产低脂肪含量的面糊涂层产品。文献综述表明，在油炸过程中，芯层和面糊涂层如何相互作用导致脂肪吸收的信息非常有限。此外，面糊涂层的表面特性的变化可用于评估在深油油炸期间面糊的变化。拟议研究项目的目标包括：描述油炸过程中模型产品中核心层和面糊涂层之间的脂肪和水分转移相互作用;研究使用不同面粉和配料配制的面糊的微观结构变化和脂肪吸收;检查面糊配方和预热对面糊系统中不同深度剖面的空间化学分布的影响;并评估面糊层的脂肪吸收、表面粗糙度和面糊配方中使用的不同成分之间的关系。研究中将使用一种新的电池装置，该装置允许生产可再现的面糊涂层，并更好地控制涂层的尺寸和厚度。肉模拟凝胶模型将用作面糊涂层下的核心产品。将以隔离加热和水分损失的方式加热面糊层，以评估预热和初始水分减少对脂肪吸收的单独作用。将通过使用比重瓶和孔隙率测定技术测量孔隙率和孔径分布来评估微观结构变化。共聚焦扫描激光显微镜（CSLM）和FTIR显微光谱技术将分别用于可视化油炸产品中的空间脂肪，淀粉和蛋白质网络。将使用表面边缘图像的分形分析测量表面粗糙度。这项研究将为深入研究油炸过程中面包涂层产品的微观结构和脂肪吸收模式提供新的知识。这将是至关重要的面糊配方的优化，以减少脂肪吸收的面包油炸食品。将对高素质人员（HQP）进行项目培训。

Batter coated foods are widely consumed in North America although there are concerns about high fat diets. It is important to develop the knowledge required for objective production of batter coated products with lower fat contents. Review of literature showed that there is very limited information available on how the core and batter coat layers interact during frying leading to fat absorption. Further, changes in the surface characteristics of the batter coating could be used to evaluate changes in batters during deep-fat frying. The goals of the proposed research project include to characterize fat and moisture transfer interactions between the core layer and batter coating in a model product during frying; study microstructural changes and fat uptake in batters formulated using different flours and ingredients; examine the influence of batter formulations and pre-heating on spatial chemical distributions at different depth profiles in a batter systems; and assess the relationship between fat absorption, surface roughness of batter layer and the different ingredients used in the batter formulation. A new cell device which allows production of reproducible batter coating with better control on the size and thickness of the layer will be used in the study. Meat analog gel model will be used as the core product under the batter coating. The batter layer will be heated in such ways to isolate heating and moisture loss in order to evaluate the separate roles of preheating and initial moisture reduction on fat absorption. Microstructural changes will be assessed by measuring porosity and pore size distributions using pycnometry and porosimetry techniques. The confocal scanning laser microscope (CSLM) and FTIR microspectroscopy techniques will be used separately to visualize spatial fat, starch and protein networks in fried products. Surface roughness will be measured using fractal analysis of surface edge images. The proposed research will develop new knowledge on microstructures and fat absorption patterns in bread coated products during deep-fat frying. It will be vital for optimization of batter formulation for reduced fat absorption in breaded fried foods. Highly qualified personnel (HQP) will be trained on the project.